


light in your eyes

by cadyjanis



Series: jaren [5]
Category: Mean Girls - Richmond/Benjamin/Fey
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/F, Fluff, Kissing, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Romance, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-11 13:11:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17447630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cadyjanis/pseuds/cadyjanis
Summary: karen is an electric kisser; janis can feel the shocks in her gut. then karen folds her hands over janis’s collarbone and rests her chin on top, batting her eyelashes at the panting girl beneath her. she looks a tad smug.“so,” she finally sighs. “what’s the surprise?”—janis is determined to make valentine’s day special for karen.





	light in your eyes

**Author's Note:**

> it’s been a hot minute since i wrote them! happy valentine’s day gays i love u all
> 
> (also, this is kind of a follow-up to [come back be here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16581596)!)

Janis is going to build that fort for Karen even if it kills her.

 

They never got around to it, for the holidays and busy second semester seemingly ate all their free time. Now it’s February and things have calmed down, and Janis is determined to make this year’s Valentine’s Day the best Karen has ever had.

 

She looks at her calendar, cursing the fact it’s on a Thursday. Not Wednesday, the perfect day to at least wear pink; and not Friday, to commence a romantic weekend. But Thursday? That’s just cruel. Janis has maybe an hour after school to get things in order.

 

Karen will come over, but who wants to do homework in a cool fort on Valentine’s Day?

 

Lost in thought during homeroom, Janis must be visibly disgruntled, because Damian taps her on the shoulder three times to get her attention.

 

“You look like you’re not going to get laid tonight,” is the first thing he says to her.

 

Janis swats at his arm. Beside her, Cady scoffs, but also gets a smack when she snickers.

 

“Probably not,” Janis grumbles regardless. She explains the actual source of her frustration, for _not_ getting laid is actually the least of her concerns right now. She just wants to make her kind, angelic girlfriend as happy as she makes Janis. But she can’t do that if they only have hours to spend on freaking Valentine’s Day. It’s no fun if you know there’s a deadline.

 

“And it _has_ to be today,” Janis insists before they can suggest anything. “It’d feel different if it’s tomorrow or Saturday. It just would.”

 

“I’m sure Karen just wants to be with you,” Cady reminds her gently.

 

“I know,” Janis sighs, head on her arms. “I just don’t want her to be disappointed.”

 

Her friends share a look, then Damian says, “She couldn’t possibly be disappointed if she likes you and knew how much effort you put into making her happy.”

 

Janis pouts, knowing he is right but unable to shake the feeling of insecurity at the thought of it not being enough. Karen expects little, so Janis always wants to give her the world.

 

Janis reunites with her blonde bundle of joy (an affectionate term coined by Damian) in history. Karen squeals and leaps up to hug her.

 

“Happy Valentine’s Daaay!” she sings, and gives her a smooch.

 

Janis grins and quite possibly may be blushing. “Happy Valentine’s Day, babe.”

 

Karen is bouncing in her heels, grasping Janis’s hands. “I’m so excited. I love Valentine’s Day. More than I love myself, I think. Which is a lot.”

 

Janis shakes her head, endeared. Perhaps there’s a chance Karen will still be pleased.

 

They hold hands periodically throughout the day, trying to one-up all the straight couples giving them looks. Janis will punch someone if necessary.

 

Luckily that doesn’t happen, and the day ends peacefully. Janis kisses Karen goodbye, hoping the next time she sees her, there’ll be a smile on her face rather than a wistful frown.

 

She gets to work as soon as she arrives home. She brings in a few kitchen chairs and finds an old sheet in her closet, shaking it out before she fastens it to the chairs. She brings the end up to her headboard and ties it, creating a canopy above her bed. Then she digs around up in the attic til she retrieves Christmas lights, knowing Karen will love it. She weaves them around her headboard so they illuminate the fort inside.

 

It’s only been twenty minutes by the time she’s done, which gives her hope. She checks to be sure there’s a sufficient amount of snacks and candy in the kitchen, then tells Karen she has a surprise for her whenever she’s able to come over. Her pulse is downright fluttering.

 

Only Karen Smith could make it do that, and at this point Janis isn’t surprised anymore. She is way too happy and in love to question it.

 

Janis finally kicks off her boots, going to sit in her window seat while she waits for Karen. She sent a ton of excited emojis in response, then a car and house, so she’s on her way.

 

Janis goes over the mental checklist, and everything seems to be in order. She tries to relax—Karen will catch on if she’s jumpy or out of it, and doesn’t want to taint this blessed holiday. It’s been a long time coming for the both of them.

 

Dang. Their first Valentine’s Day as a couple. They weren’t even friends a year ago.

 

Janis tries to just breathe as she goes to answer the door. She hopes she’s everything Karen’s ever wanted. She hopes the rest of today will make her feel special.

 

Karen leaps into her arms the moment the door opens, and her body is so cute and warm and soft, and they stand there hugging in the foyer for a long time, swaying a bit. If this was all that happened today, they’d both be content.

 

Then Karen’s nuzzling her neck, kissing up her jaw to her lips, hands cupping her face. Janis’s senses sort of shut down, only to reawaken and focus solely on Karen. They stumble until they get to the living room couch, falling onto the cushions in a tangle of limbs.

 

They’re there for a while. Karen is an electric kisser; Janis can feel the shocks in her gut. Then Karen folds her hands over Janis’s collarbone and rests her chin on top, batting her eyelashes at the panting girl beneath her. She looks a tad smug.

 

“So,” she finally sighs. “What’s the surprise?”

 

Janis’s head is so cloudy with lust she can’t remember for a moment. She blinks back to reality to say, “Oh, right. That. Yeah. C’mon.”

 

They reluctantly untangle themselves and rise from the couch. Janis links their fingers, though Karen is more than willing to follow her, and leads her down the hall to her room.

 

“Ta-da,” Janis awkwardly sings as she nudges open the door.

 

Karen’s hands fly to cover her mouth, and she starts jumping up and down and squealing. She clearly likes it, but Janis naturally wonders if she’s just pretending so her feelings won’t be hurt—then remembers it’s Karen, and Karen would never lie.

 

“Babe!” the blonde shrieks, hugging her ecstatically. “Oh my gosh, it’s so cute! You did this all by yourself? Oh my God, I love it! Mwah!” She kisses her cheek then hurries to ditch her heels and climb into the fort. Janis follows her, grinning bashfully as Karen compliments it.

 

The Christmas lights are a hit, as expected, and Karen can’t get over how cozy it is. Janis is on her side, watching the lights reflect in her wide eyes, and can’t believe she doubted herself. Karen is happier than she’s ever been.

 

“I love it,” Karen whispers again, leaning in to softly kiss her. “I’m so happy.”

 

“Good,” Janis hums, tapping her nose. “Sorry it took so long for us to finally do this.”

 

Karen scoffs. “Worth the wait, I’d say. It’s even better that today is Valentine’s Day. It’s cuter, in my opinion. Christmas forts are cool, but this is better.”

 

Janis reaches out to touch her cheek, brushing her knuckles along Karen’s jaw. “Yeah. But it’s okay, though? You really like it? I wanted today to be special, and it sucks we have homework to do at some point, but—”

 

Karen silences her with a kiss. “Stop. Don’t even talk about homework. Homework, more like homophobic.” She snorts at her joke. “We’ve got loads of time. Just lay here with me.”

 

Janis can’t argue with that. So she lays on her back and Karen gets comfortable, snuggled up to her side, their legs entwined. It’s quiet, no sound but their breathing.

 

“You’re the best girlfriend I’ve ever had,” Karen murmurs sleepily at some point.

 

Janis snickers. “I’m the only girlfriend you’ve ever had,” she reminds her, and Karen nods and shrugs. She lifts her head, smirking, and soon they’re kissing again, and Janis is happy, too.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! kudos and comments are fetch ♡


End file.
